World Rabies Day September 28, 2018

From pre-historic period, dogs have been man’s loyal animal companion and since then, rabies has been a threat to human life. Our four-footed companions, be they dogs or cats or monkeys, as charming as they may be, an infected one poses serious risk to human health.

The most dangerous aspect of rabies is that, once infected, it cannot be cured. So, prevention is all we got.

Vaccination for the unaffected and management of the infected are the only things we can do. Let’s explore the preventive measures.

Vaccine Shots For Pets

Vaccinate your pets and domestic animals. Dogs, cats, horses, rabbits, rats and other mammals which stay in close contact with human all can get infected by rabies. Rabid animals do not stay in their right mind and hence, even if they are calm generally, rabies turns them violent and they can bite you and hence, contaminate you.

Vaccine Shots For Humans

If you get bitten by a mammal, you must see a doctor immediately. Unless you are absolutely sure of the vaccination status of the animal that bit you, you should not take any risk. Because once the virus becomes active inside your body, there is no cure.

Rabies vaccine shots for humans come in 5 doses – Day 0-Day 3-Day 5-Day 14-Day 28. In places with high risk, where many animal have been found to be rabid, vaccine shots can be taken as a preventive precaution.

Knowing The Symptoms In An Animal

Watch out for the following symptoms in an animal around you:

Sudden change in behaviour

More aggression and/or restlessness than usual

Preferring darker places

Constantly irritating a wound (which can be the point of rabies infection)

Loss of appetite

Fever

Seizures

Knowing The Symptoms In A Human

The symptoms in humans are much like animals. Here are the indications of rabies in humans:

Tingling in the bite site

Fever

Nausea and vomiting

Loss of physical and mental coordination

Aggression

Excessive production of saliva

Insomnia

Loss of function of various throat muscles that help in speech production and swallowing.

Muscle spasm

Hydrophobia – fear of water

Managing An Infected Human

Rabies is 100% fatal. The patient is going to die. You cannot do anything about it. However, you can still save yourself.

Rabid animals are generally euthanised. As cruel or inhumane as it might sound, you must also be very careful around a person infected with rabies. Rabies can be contaminated through the bite or scratch of an infected human also.

You should not come in touch with any bodily liquid of the patient. Isolation is often practised as the person gets more aggressive. Make sure your keep your children safely away from the victim.

As for the patient, it’s better to keep the patient in a medical institute where doctors might be able to ease their way towards their end.

This World Rabies Day, September 28, 2018, let’s spread awareness and stay cautious.

About the Hospital:

Medisys Hospital is a growing super specialty hospital in Hyderabad that represents the vision and mission of a group of highly qualified and experienced veteran medical professionals. Started in June 2016, it is a 200-bedded hospital with all medical and surgical specialities available. We rely on our in-house state-of-the-art diagnostic and therapeutic possibilities to provide high level care for our patients.

Vara Lakshmi

Shravan Kumar

Welcome to medisys

Welcome to Medisys Hospitals, a growing super speciality hospital in Hyderabad that represents the vision and mission of a group of highly qualified and experienced veteran medical professionals. Started in June 2016, Medisys is a 200-bedded full-fledged medical facility with all medical and surgical speciality services available.